THE MOMENT OF TRUTH

 by Phillip Starr

Contrary to what Hollywood would have us believe, a life and death encounter involving swordsmen of feudal Japan rarely lasted more than a couple of seconds. There was no long, drawn-out series of slashes and blocks made blade to blade. You would see one of the combatants begin a movement and in the next instant, only one of the participants was still standing.

The former chairman of the world-renowned Japan Karate Association, Masatoshi Nakayama (dec.), once said, “The mystery existing between an open moment and person's preparedness reveals the truth.” What truth is he talking about? And just what is an “open moment?”

An “open moment.” It is the moment when the opponent's ability to adequately defend himself in lowered or disappears altogether. It is the discovery of a “chink” in his armor, a physical, mental, or spiritual weakness of which he is unaware. This window of opportunity may be open for some considerable time or it may be open for only a second.

It may involve the opponent losing his balance momentarily, he may become distracted, his breathing pattern may become flustered, he may become overly excited, angry, or his spirit may waver. This condition is known as “kyo” (“xi” in Chinese), which may be translated as, “hollow, empty.” Its opposite is “jutsu” (“shu” in Chinese), which means roughly, “full.” If the opponent is in the condition known as “jutsu”, he is prepared to receive an attack and to attempt to strike him at this time could well end in disaster. However, if he is in the condition known as “kyo”, he is vulnerable and it's up to you to exploit it and slip through the small opening that he has unconsciously provided. And this brings us to the second part of Master Nakayama's statement.

“A person's preparedness” refers to your sensitivity to the moment(s) of kyo when it appears and to your ability and willingness to take advantage of it. That's simply an ornate way of saying, “ready, willing, and able.” You must focus entirely on your foe; you must be acutely aware of his posture and movements, you must know his mind, and feel his spirit. You must be totally “connected.” Your own body, mind, and spirit must be poised on a hair trigger. When the moment of truth appears, you must act without the slightest hesitation. This material is thoroughly covered in my book, MARTIAL MANEUVERS.

This naturally infers that you must have no regard for yourself. Your objective is to bring the enemy down at all costs. Period. You must focus entirely on your opponent; you can't leave a part of your mind behind to think about yourself. This mindset is very different from that with which we, as Westerners, are accustomed. Many contemporary martial arts enthusiasts, from beginners to black belts, don't fully understand the essence of this concept and consequently don't apply it to their martial arts practice or their daily lives. In my opinion, this all but completely sterilizes the real spirit of the martial arts.

Only one who has seen into the heart of the traditional martial ways can truly understand and feel this concept. The conflict will be resolved in an instant, and in the blink of an eye the truth of your spirit and skill will be known.